Don't Let Go
by Kulani Tawanoki
Summary: When Hyuuga Neji is forced to go on a treaty mission with the Hidden Mist, he expects Tsunade to send him alone. That thought is thrown out the window when he meets his new partner, Koorino Anrui. Who is this girl and why does Neji feel so strangly lately
1. Chapter 1

"You will be gone for at least two weeks. Don't forget to stable our relations with the Mist Village. Team Kakashi did us wonders four years ago by taking out Gato and his gang, but in these times we need to be absolutely positive. Do you understand the severity of this mission, Hyuuga?" A woman with long blonde hair and harsh amber eyes asked as she looked at a young man standing before her. He was tall, wearing a traditional Hyuuga outfit and his long brown hair had a tie near the base of his hair. His proud, calm, icy light purple-blue eyes looked at her, almost in distaste. He nodded seriously.

"Of course Hokage-sama." The woman nodded and looked at the papers on her desk. She picked up a stack and tapped the bottom against the desk. She looked at him again, almost hesitant, but straightforward.

"And another thing, Hyuuga. You will be taking one other member on your team. She has proved herself worthy of being useful in political situations." Neji's lip curled slightly over his teeth, but he nodded obediently. Tsunade motioned a figure over from the shadows. Neji stiffened, mentally cursing himself for not noticing her presence sooner. He wondered how he had missed her before.

She had light brown hair that hung loosely in a ponytail that trailed down to the middle of her back. She was wearing a small, beige-colored, kimono-like top that had only one sleeve covering her left arm, but leaving her right arm free. Underneath that were black leggings that were cut off by bandages wrapped around her legs and leading to her black nin-sandals. She also had arm bandages. It didn't escape his eyes that her left side was more tightly bound than her right. Past her neck, he could see no skin showing on her left side.

The young woman bowed respectfully to Tsunade, being very formal in her movements and then turned to look at Neji. She bowed to him as well and then raised her head and met his eyes. Neji nearly started with surprise. Her eyes were a light purple, nearly rivaling the opacity of his Hyuuga eyes. Her lips parted in a brilliant smile.

"It's very nice to make your acquaintance, Hyuuga-san. My name is Koorino Anrui. I look forward to completing this mission with you." Neji nodded and broke free of her powerful stare.

"Hn." He responded ungraciously. Anrui's smile didn't waver as she turned back to look at Tsunade.

"We'll see you as soon as the treaty is complete, Tsunade-sama. Try and keep the village intact while we're gone, okay? I trust you." Tsunade snorted, but smiled at the young woman, captivated by her charismatic nature just as Neji was. Anrui turned back towards Neji, a playful grin on her face. "So, mission leader, what do you want me to do?" Neji's lip nearly curled at her enthusiasm, but he forced it to stay down, thanks to many years of practice with Rock Lee and Maito Gai.

"Are you ready to go or do I have to wait?" He asked coldly, not seeing a bag anywhere near her. She nodded and walked to the corner of the room where she had come from. Neji noticed as she walked that she limped slightly on her left side, but she concealed it well. What unnerved Neji was that he found himself strangely curious as to why. She bent over, keeping her right leg straight as she bent over and tossed a bag into the air, raising her arms and letting land on her back. She walked back over to join him.

"I'm ready, Hyuuga-san. Anything else or do we get to head out now?" She asked curiously. Neji shook his head and turned to walk out the door. "Bye, Tsunade-sama. Tell Retsumori-sensei that I said good-bye, okay?" Tsunade agreed and Neji turned and walked out the door. Anrui followed quickly. Neji found himself slowing his pace down so that she could keep up. The limp was becoming more pronounced the longer they walked and she had to slow down in order not to tire herself. He was confused; usually, he shunned weakness in everyone else. Why was it that he was so concerned with the weakness of this new girl?

"Why are you so slow?" He asked suddenly. He stiffened at his own outburst, expecting her to be like every other female he knew and jump on him for telling her about her weakness in such a manner. She just gave him a smile, letting out a short laugh.

"So, you've noticed my weakness already, Hyuuga-san? I apologize. My left leg is weaker than most, so it's a little harder for me. It's a challenge that I have yet to overcome, no matter how hard I've tried." Her light silvery-purple eyes met his. "I should have known that your byakugan shouldn't be underestimated. Forgive me Hyuuga-san, I'll do better to try and keep up. Neji nodded in approval, watching her push herself to match his faster, stiffer pace.

"Will you be able to keep up when we're on our way to the Hidden Mist?" He asked, his tone almost cold, though he hadn't meant it to be. The smile on her lips didn't falter, like he had expected it to, if anything, it grew.

"No probably not." She replied honestly. His eyes narrowed slightly and now he was sure that her smile had grown. "Don't worry about it, Hyuuga-san. I, with my left leg being as it is, couldn't keep up with a great jounin such as yourself. However, Keiro can. He'll make sure that I don't get left behind. If anything, he might give even _you_ a run for your money." Neji frowned at her teasing.

"_Another_ person is coming along?" He asked, unhappy. He preferred to work alone and now he had a weak girl and another mystery person coming along with him? This was turning out to be a very bad day. She laughed, despite his obvious sudden bad mood.

"I think that you've got it all wrong, Hyuuga-san. I'm the only human that will be coming along with you on this mission. Keiro…" She paused, biting her bottom lip while grinning. "Well, you'll see him when we get to the gate." She promised vaguely. Neji sighed, about to say something else, but another figure suddenly ran up next to him.

"Neji-san! I came to wish you the very best of luck on your mission!" The new man told him excitedly. He had a large bowl-cut hairstyle and huge eyebrows. Neji rolled his eyes and Anrui giggled quietly, smothering it with her hand.

"Thank you, Lee." He ground out through clenched teeth. Lee's eyes shot over to Anrui, who had lagged behind a little, sweat beads on her forehead from the quick pace. His eyes widened and he bowed slightly, keeping up with Neji himself. He stood beside her, taking her hand and kissing it lightly.

"Hello, fair lady. I am Rock Lee! May I be graced with your name?" Anrui smiled slightly, a light blush tracing her face. Neji's frown deepened considerably at his treatment of his new teammate. A dark emotion was bubbling up in the pit of his stomach, one that he was familiar with; jealousy. He frowned even more, trying to figure out _why_ he was jealous.

"My name is Koorino Anrui. It's so nice to meet you, Rock Lee." She looked over at Neji and met his gaze. With a smile, she carefully and politely removed her hand from Lee's grasp. "I'm sorry to have to part so soon, Lee-san, but Hyuuga-san and I are on a tight schedule because we have to get to the Hidden Mist as soon as possible. It really was wonderful to have met you, Rock Lee." Lee smiled at her nodding his head quickly.

"What a strong sense of duty! It is so youthful! Goodbye, Koorino-san! I hope to see you when you get back!" He shot off the way he had come from and Neji looked over at Anrui in surprise.

"How did you do that?" He said with something akin with awe. "I can never get him to leave me alone. It always takes me hours." Anrui giggled and shrugged.

"I guess I'm just better with people than you are, Hyuuga-san. Oh, look at that, we're at the gate." She raised her right hand to her mouth and bit sharply on her thumb, letting blood out of the small cut. Anrui quickly did handseals that Neji recognized immediately as the Kuchiyose No Jutsu. She stepped back to make way for a large gray and black-striped tiger easily the size of three horses.

"Hyuuga-san, meet Keiro, my partner. Keiro, this is Hyuuga Neji. He's a good person and the person that is coming with me on my mission, so try not to eat him okay?" She leaned up next to it's ear. "I don't think he'd taste very good anyway." Keiro let out a raspy, purr-sounding noise and nuzzled her fondly. She giggled and pushed him away, smiling at Neji again. Neji's lips suddenly felt the urge to join her's in a smile, but he forced them to stay in a straight line. He nodded toward the tier, a question in his raised eyebrows.

"And how exactly is your giant friend going to help you keep up with me?" He asked curiously. Her smile widened and she leapt into the air, landing on Keiro's back with obvious skilled ease. Her eyes sparkled in mischief and a grin played on her lips.

"Race you, Hyuuga-san!" Keiro suddenly shot off and Neji's eyes widened. He ran after them, catching up only after a few miles had been put between them and the Hidden Leaf.

"Koorino! Slow down!" He called sternly. She let out an exuberant laugh, slowing Keiro so that Neji could easily catch up and keep pace with the giant feline. She grinned at him, an excited light in her eyes. He couldn't stop his lips, this time, from turning upwards into a smile.

"You're insane, Koorino." He chuckled quietly. She laughed and nodded, obviously agreeing with him. They traveled for as long as the sun was up, stopping only once at noon to let Keiro get a drink. By the end of the day, both of the humans were exhausted. Neji because he had run practically the entire day and Anrui because, instead of food, Keiro had to be sustained on her chakra and running hungered the great beast.

"C-can we stop now, Hyuuga-san? My chakra storage is running out fast and," she picked up a strand of sweaty hair from the back of her neck, "I desperately need a bath." Neji nodded and led them to a well-protected, shady clearing in the trees. Anrui released her summons on Keiro, telling him to get a good rest so that they could run again tomorrow. After the large tiger disappeared, Neji used a simple fire jutsu to get the fire started. They quickly and efficiently set up camp. Neji was surprised that she could follow orders as quickly as she did with the weakness in her left leg.

"Koorino–"

"Please, Hyuuga-san, call me Anrui." She interrupted with a smile. He nodded slightly, expecting as much from someone like her.

"Fine. Anrui, why is your left leg so weak? You've never told me the reason before." Her lips faltered for a moment but the smile stayed on her face. She looked away not, or unable to, meet his strong gaze. She looked like someone who was about to get reprimanded, minus the smile on her face. She put her hands in her lap properly, having sat down to rest her leg.

"Is the great Hyuuga prodigy concerned for someone like me? I'm touched, Hyuuga-san." Neji's eyes narrowed at her tease, though he felt the odd urge to laugh at her jokes.

"That's not the topic at hand, Koo-Anrui." He scolded lightly. The smile faltered again, but stayed in place. After a few moments of her silence, he sighed. "I like to know exactly who I'm working with. Since I know nothing about you, why don't we start with your leg?"

"Let's just say…" She paused, looking for the right words, the smile on her face turning sad. "Let's just say that destiny was not kind to me, Hyuuga-san." She whispered. She got up suddenly, reaching for her bag. "If you don't mind, Hyuuga-san, I'm going to go and take a bath." She didn't look at him as she quickly limped out of the clearing, towards where the river was. Neji sighed, a frown marring his otherwise cool features.

Koorino Anrui was proving herself to be an enigma to the Hyuuga prodigy. He had never seen her without a smile on her face and she had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He didn't claim to knowing all of the villagers of Konoha, but he knew all of the people in and around his age group. She had to be at least two years younger than him, and he knew everyone in that age group. And her left leg was week and she was unwilling, or unable, to explain the reason why. Maybe her parents beat her and she was ashamed of it. Or maybe it was a birth defect she wasn't proud of. He stopped thinking, getting more questions than answers and only making himself more frustrated.

He looked over at where she had left, wanting to go and demand answers from her. Neji thought back to what she said, her whisper still echoing in his mind. Destiny wasn't kind to her? What did that mean? Neji sighed angrily, laying back against the tree he was sitting against.

She came back moments later, saying nothing but still giving him a soft smile. Her hair was still wet as she laid down and went to sleep, still not giving him a word. Her silence toward her cut into him like a kunai and he didn't know why. He couldn't help wondering if he had hurt her and feeling upset if he did. Closing his eyes, he shut down his mind to the questions that kept assaulting him, wanting the freedom if only for a few hours.


	2. Chapter 2

They kept the same pace as they did before, Anrui summoning Keiro again to keep up with Neji's rigorous pace. She still hadn't said anything the entire morning, but she would give him a smile every time she caught him looking. When she didn't, a small smile still played on her lips, giving her a cheerfully innocent look as they crossed the border into another territory.

"Anrui, I'm– "

"Don't." She whispered, catching him by surprise. "Don't even think the words 'I'm sorry'. You have nothing to be sorry about. Destiny is unkind. It's a mere fact of life that we of the mortal race must accept. Lady Fate has given me much to think about." She smiled widely at him.

"Why won't you answer my questions, Anrui? Did I upset you?" He asked, grateful and relieved that she was speaking to him again. She looked forward again, not answering. "I will get answers, Koorino Anrui." He threatened. She let out a small, almost sigh-like laugh.

"I know, Hyuuga-san. You're very persistent." She smiled, looking at him again. "I just don't feel that the time is right for my story to be shared, Hyuuga-san. And don't think that you've offended me or upset me, you haven't, I promise. If all goes right, my story will be shared by the end of the mission, I promise." Neji nodded, only slightly appeased. More questions spun around in his head, but he had enough self control to be able to wait until she wanted to share with him. "Is that the Naruto Bridge?" She asked, pointing to a bridge as they came to the ocean.

"Yes." He responded, looking at the large bridge. A guard stopped them at the end of the land. Keiro growled, throwing the guard off-balance, but Anrui stroked him, getting him to hush.

"No summons are allowed on the bridge. Mizukage's orders." The guard said in a faltering voice. Anrui's eyes turned worried and the smile left her face for the first time since Neji had met her. He noticed that she put a hand on her left leg. Neji's eyes narrowed at the guard, who began sweating under his heated gaze.

"Can your feeble bridge not withstand the weight of Anrui's carrier?" He asked in open challenge. A scoff came from his left and he turned, looking upon an old man with small, rounded glasses. This was Tazuna, the builder of the bridge. Neji knew him from the stories that Naruto and Sakura had shared about their adventures in the Land of Waves.

"That bridge could hold up a hundred of your 'carriers' and not feel any strain. The no summons rule is only for safety's measures. We're cautious, you see. Don't want another Gato coming in and taking over." Anrui nodded and, before Neji could say anything else, released her summon on Keiro and landed on her right leg.

"But Anrui, what about your leg?" Neji asked quietly as they began walking. Anrui smiled at him and put a steadying hand on her left leg, limping only very slightly and keeping pace with him easily.

"Am I so weak that I cannot walk across a bridge without you worrying about me, Hyuuga-san? I can make it this far. Exceptions can't always be made for people with disabilities. I'll try and keep up." She promised.

They were halfway across the large bridge when a family with more children than they could control passed them, going the opposite direction. One of the boys, a nasty looking scrap, purposefully kicked Anrui's left side as she limped past. She let out a gasp of pain, her bad leg giving out, as she toppled to the ground.

"Ha! The great shinobi falls at the hands of Ware! Prepare to die, enemy scum!" He leapt at her left side, preparing to strike again. Neji let out a snarl, stopping the boy in his tracks.

"Get away from her before I show you how one falls at the hands of a shinobi!" They boy let out a whimper of fear at the heated anger in Neji's eyes and he ran back to the other children. Neji knelt down beside Anrui, who smiled at him, though he could see the strain behind it.

"I'm okay, Hyuuga-san. Let's get started again. We need to get there as soon as possible." She pushed herself to her feet, her left leg trembling violently. As soon as she put her weight on it, she stumbled and would have fallen if Neji hadn't caught her in his strong arms.

"No, you're obviously not okay. You're hurt." His eyes narrowed at her. "Your leg was about to give out even before that little brat kicked you, wasn't it?" She grinned sheepishly at him and nodded. He sighed, taking her pack off of her back and slipping it on his own He then picked her up, carrying her as he walked. Even as she protested, he could feel the very fragility of her entire left side. His eyes widened slightly. And here he had thought it was only her leg.

"Hey! You're the Konoha ninja aren't you? Is she all right?" A young boy wearing the hitai-ate of the hidden mist quickly ran up to them.

"Yes I'm fi–"

"Her left leg is weak and one of your little brats from the Mist made her leg completely give out." Neji snapped angrily. The little boy rolled his eyes at the anger and Anrui gave him a small smile, shrugging helplessly. She gave Neji a look that told him that he was going to be in trouble later, but he ignored it.

"My name is Inari. I'll be your guide while you're staying here. Come on, I'll show you the place that you'll be staying at while you're here." He gave Anrui another look. "She looks like she could use some rest."

"I'm _fine_." She insisted. Her eyes traveled up to Neji's and she smiled. "Hyuuga-san, please. My leg feels much better now. I can walk if we slow down just a little." Neji shook his head, holding her a little tighter as he followed their guide through the crowded streets. Anrui muttered pleasant complaints, a small smile still on her lips.

"Here you go." Inari called as he led them to a small, elegant hut almost in the middle of the bustling city. Neji nodded and walked in while Anrui called their thanks over his shoulder. Neji placed her in a chair on one side of the room, putting a hand on her shoulder as he looked back at their guide.

"We weren't expecting different genders, so you'll have to sleep in the same hut. The hot springs is on the west side of the village. They're same-gender, so be warned. If you have any questions, just asked me. Feel free to wander the streets of the village, but please try not to get lost. The first treaty talk is at eight o'clock in the morning. It would do you well to be there early. The Mizukage likes things to start right on time." Inari left the two of them alone. Neji frowned and looked down at a smiling Anrui. He raised his eyebrow in question.

"What? I think he's cute." She giggled. Neji rolled his eyes and began unpacking his things onto one side of the room. Anrui smiled at him and limped over to do the same to the other side. They spend about an hour in silence, each of them immersed in their work, before Anrui put down her things with a sigh. "I'm sorry, Hyuuga-san." Neji looked at her in surprise.

"What?" She looked away from him, turning her face down and massaging her left leg absentmindedly.

"I'm sorry. I know that you'd much rather work alone than have to work with someone like me. I'm weak and I'm annoying and I'm sorry that Tsunade's forced you to put up with me." She murmured softly. Neji shook his head as he walked over to her, putting a hand on her good shoulder.

"I have to admit, I wasn't very happy at first. It's true that I do like to work alone, but anyone would think the same if they had my genin team. You remember Lee, don't you? Yeah, well, our sensei is _exactly_ like him. But you're different. You're easy to be around, even if you don't tell me anything about yourself. And your weakness?" He smiled at her, his lips unaccustomed to being in that position. "I can cover for you." She smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist in a hug.

"Thank you, Hyuuga-san." Neji looked at her, surprised, though not very upset that she was hugging him. Her eyes suddenly widened and she released him, taking a few steps back with her hands behind her back. "I-I'm sorry!" She called, her face bright red. Neji's own face turned a light shade of pink.

"You're fine. I didn't mind all that much, Anrui. And please," he smiled again, "call me Neji." The young woman quickly nodded, obviously still embarrassed, and sat down on the bedroll that she had made for herself. She pulled her legs into a cross-legged position and took a thin string necklace off her neck and rested the small medallion in her palms. Neji walked over to her, curious. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to meditate. This is a destiny coin that was made for me when I was very young. I never go anywhere without it." She smiled at him. "You can join me if you wish. I thought that I would calm myself down before even trying to go to sleep." Neji nodded and sat down beside her. She smiled at him and closed her eyes, so he closed his as well.

He was suddenly very hyper-aware of her presence next to him. Every move she made, however slight, was rooted into his consciousness. Her smell made his mouth water and he could identify every scent that came off of her skin. Honey was the most powerful one, apple blossoms a more subdued scent. She smelled very sweet, reflecting her personality. Or maybe it was the other way around. He swallowed hard, driving those thoughts from his mind as he snapped his eyes open. As soon as he could again see, the feeling of hyper-sensitivity was gone. He could still smell her though; the scent was rooted into his brain, never to go away. Neji quickly stood and moved away, looking at her.

She had a dark blush on her face. Neji found himself wondering if she had had the same experience as he had just experienced. He cleared his throat, suddenly nervous, and her hands clenched tighter around the coin in her palms.

"H-How about instead of meditating, we just talk?" Neji suggested, not wanting to experience that again, for fear of what it might do to his self-control. She nodded, slipping a string through the small hole at the top of the coin. She slipped the makeshift necklace over her head and looked at him through her lashes.

"Anything specific, Hyuuga-san?" She asked quietly. Neji looked at her left leg, wanting to know the truth, but he was afraid it would upset her again if he asked so soon after the first time. Instead, he looked at the destiny coin on its string around her neck.

"What exactly is a 'destiny coin'? What significance does it have?" Anrui smiled at him and again took the necklace off her neck, holding it out for him to see. He took it from her outstretched palms and ran his fingers over the surface. It was still warm from her body head, and he tried not to dwell too long on that fact. The surface had a strange star at the bottom with multiple rays protruding outward. Strange runes marked a circle around the edge of the coin.

"What does the picture mean? The runes?" He asked, handing her precious coin back to her. She took it back, looking grateful that it was again in her possession, and smiled fondly at it.

"The star signifies a person and the rays signify all of the different roads that a person's destiny can take them on. The runes? Well," she smiled secretively. "A seer looked into my future when I was born and wrote my destiny on this coin. I just haven't learned to read it yet."

"Can't you ask the seer to tell you the answer? Well, at least he could teach you how to read what he wrote on the coin." Anrui's smile turned sad and he wished he could take his words back.

"I think that he might've, but now…he's dead. I don't think he could help me much anymore." Neji frowned and nodded. She smiled again. "I'm sorry. I turned the mood rather morbid right there, didn't I? I don't think that I'll be going to the hot springs. Do you mind if I go to sleep a little early?" She asked.

"Of course not. Do what you want. I probably won't outlast you very long; the journey here took its toll on the both of us. Besides, we need to be prepared for anything tomorrow." Anrui nodded and laid down, closing her eyes. Neji watched as her features relaxed and she drifted off to sleep. Subduing the strong, strange urge to go over and touch her hair, he laid down on his own bedroll. Her sweet scent assaulted his senses once more as he, himself, drifted off to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

The next two weeks went by uneventfully. Anrui and Neji went to talks with the Mizukage, a frivolous man named Raku, for a few hours every day. Anrui's smile drew everyone in like flies to honey, no pun intended, and her cheerful jokes and sunny disposition got them out of many hairy situations.

It was the day before they were scheduled to leave and they had just gotten back from their last treaty talk with the Mizukage. All they had left was the signing of the treaty and then they could go home. Anrui was sitting down on her bedroll, looking out the window with a fear-filled spark in her silvery-lavender eyes. Dark clouds were covering the horizon and, even from here, Neji could see the lightning churning deep within them. A very bad thunderstorm was on the way. He walked over and sat down beside Anrui, putting an arm around her shoulders.

"What's the matter, Anrui? And you can't say 'oh, it's nothing, I'm fine', because I can see your eyes. Something is worrying you. Tell me?" He asked pleadingly. She blushed and massaged her left leg, something Neji had discovered she unconsciously did whenever she was nervous. It had only been two weeks since the start of their mission and yet, he knew her better than he knew even his cousin, Hinata. It amazed him that this all had started occurring after the first time they had meditated together.

"I'm not sure, Hyuuga-san." She said honestly. "I just have a strange feeling that something is going to happen." Neji gave her a look.

"Anrui. What have I told you about calling me 'Hyuuga-san'?" Anrui blushed again and massaged her leg even harder. Anrui had opened up more to Neji, but she still hadn't told him about her past.

"I'm sorry, Hyuuga-san, but I don't think that it would be proper. You're from a very influential family and I'm…well I'm just me. I don't have any important significance." Neji hugged her around the shoulders tighter and she hesitantly laid her head against his shoulder.

"You're important, Anrui. Believe me; you're more important than you give yourself credit for." He whispered softly. She blushed, but still gave her head a soft shake. She stood up, her leg twisting painfully and winced.

"I'm going to go and walk around. It's our last day here, remember? I think I might actually miss this place, but I'm not so sure. I haven't seen Keiro in two weeks." She smiled at him and waved as she limped towards the door. Neji stood.

"Do you want me to come with you?" He asked, always the gentleman. She smiled and shook her head.

"No, I think I'll go by myself this time, Hyuuga-san. I'll be home by sundown, I promise." She walked out the door. Neji sighed and began doing mundane tasks around the hut. He packed everything they wouldn't need so that they could make a quick escape tomorrow. He put the packs by the door, again so that they wouldn't have to stay any longer than they had to. He was eager to get the mission over with, wanting Anrui to keep up her promise that he could know about her past before the mission was over.

After doing a few more tasks that would make their leave easier, he looked out the window at the sky and found the sun sinking behind the horizon. Neji looked at the door to the hut, surprised that Anrui wasn't back yet. Anrui always kept to her promises. As he waited, the sun sank completely. A sense of worry filled him and he set out to go and find her.

It was more difficult in the dark, but thankfully, many of the shops around them had lanterns that made it easier. Activating his byakugan, he searched for her familiar chakra signature, and found residue of it being used in the east corner of the village. He deactivated his technique and quickly shot off in the direction he had found it. When he got there, he looked around and saw signs of a battle. A few of the abandoned buildings were crushed and there were a few splashes of blood here and there. His heart was beating wildly in his chest as he noticed something shine out of the corner of his eye.

There, to his right, lying in the dust, was Anrui's destiny coin. The string had been snapped and there were specks of blood on the metal's surface. Neji's heart stopped as he picked it up, holding it close against his chest.

"Damn it!" He yelled. Neji ran towards the hut again, running into Inari on the way in.

"Ah! Hyuuga-sama! What's going on? Why do you look so…mad?" He asked cautiously, backing away from the fuming shinobi. Neji's furious eyes snapped over to him.

"Anrui has been attacked and kidnapped. I'm going to go and find her. Tell the Mizukage that we'll have to postpone the signing of the treaty." He told him, barely containing his rage. Inari's eyes widened and he shook his head.

"You can't do that! The Mizukage won't sign the treaty unless it's tomorrow! That's what he sent me to tell you!" Neji snapped and his byakugan activated.

"Then to hell with your dammed treaty!" He yelled as he rushed off. Running into the hut, he saw a slip of paper sitting on Anrui's bedroll. Picking it up he read:

_Konoha Shinobi. If you ever want to see your weak little partner again, you will forfeit any claims you have to a treaty with the Hidden Mist and go home. We will make sure that she is well cared for until your hokage returns to take her home. _

Neji scoffed, his hands shaking. "Like hell you will, you bastards." He muttered to himself. He flipped the paper over and noticed a strange, slightly raised indention on the bottom left corner of the paper. Not seeing it clearly, even with his byakugan activated, he moved the paper directly under the light from a lamp that was positioned in the far corner of the room. The mark was obviously the imprint of a stamp that was used for official documents. Neji looked extremely close at the mark to see if he could make out any distinguishing features. His head snapped up when he realized what the mark was; the seal of the Mizukage.

"That bastard! He set us up!" Neji snarled under his breath. The only good thing that came from realizing where the kidnappers came from was that he now knew where he could go to get some answers. Neji gripped the paper tightly in his left hand while clutching at Anrui's destiny coin in his right. The guards positioned at the entrance to the mizukage building stopped him as he tried to walk in the door.

"Sorry, Hyuuga. You can't go in there. Mizukage's orders." Neji took a deep breath, trying to calm the rage building inside of himself. With a few swift motions, he used his trigrams to take out the guards on either side of the door before they knew what hit them. He quickly hid their unconscious bodies and ran into the building. Knowing from experience where the Mizukage's office was, he walked there slowly, trying to calm himself down before he came face to face with the leader of an enemy village.

As he neared the office, he felt the rage bubbling inside him yet again. He growled; there was no way he was leaving without Anrui. He slammed open the door and walked in. Raku looked up at him through impassive gray eyes, annoyance on his features.

"It is more polite to knock, Hyuuga-san." Raku told the Konoha shinobi in a cool, monotone voice. Neji slammed the paper down onto the desk, glaring at the Mizukage. The black-haired man picked up the paper and looked it over, his mouth frowning with interest. "Ah, so Koorino-san has been taken because our treaty has gone on this long, is it? Well, I'm terribly sorry about her loss, but that doesn't explain why you're here." Neji barely bit back a snarl.

"Your seal is on that paper, Raku-sama. This was under your authority. I'm going to say this only one time; give Koorino Anrui back to me and blood will not be shed. Do you agree to these terms?" Raku's eyes narrowed and he stood menacingly. Neji met his gaze unflinchingly.

"Are you accusing me of capturing an enemy shinobi and holding her for ransom, Hyuuga Neji? Those are very high terms you're accusing me of." Neji leaned forward.

"They're well deserved, Raku-sama. Now, give Koorino back to me. We'll go home and not sign the treaty. You can negotiate directly with Tsunade-sama." Raku pointed swiftly to the door.

"Get out of here and never return! I will not stand here in silence while a mere whelp accuses me of kidnapping someone like Koorino Anrui. Get _out_ before I call in my Silver Operatives!" Neji snarled, but turned on his heel, so upset that his byakugan activated on its own. His pale lavender eyes widened when he noticed Anrui's now-familiar chakra coils down below him. He discreetly rushed to the nearest stairwell and started descending the staircase level by level, trying to get to her.

He got to the point where her coils were the closest when he heard her scream. Neji stopped dead in his tracks, not even breathing. His vision suddenly flashed red and he sped forward. An iron door was the only thing that stood in his way of getting to Anrui. He could hear her now, screaming something to someone he couldn't see. He spun around and kicked the door so hard that it left a large dent and fell off of its hinges.

All eyes turned to him, standing tall after kicking the heavy door down. Five large men were standing around parts of the room while two more stood near Anrui. She was heavily chained to the wall, her hands raised above her head far enough apart that she couldn't bring them together to use her hand seals, her ankles bound together, chains criss-crossing around her chest and stomach and down her legs. Her brown hair, usually so neatly kept back in a ponytail, was hanging around her face. Her clothes were tattered with bits of her left side, normally kept tightly under wraps, showing bits of horribly scarred skin. Her eyes were wide and tears were gathered at the corners. Their eyes met and she gave a shaky smile.

"You came." She whispered quietly. Everything exploded into movement at that point. The five guards around the room launched themselves at Neji, who was afraid to use any of his techniques in such close quarters when there was a risk of him hitting Anrui. The two guards near her stayed where they were, kunai drawn to jump into the battle if their comrades needed their help.

Neji used as much hand-to-hand combat as he could, thankful for those extra training sessions that Lee and Gai-sensei made him participate in. He reminded himself to thank them when he finally got home. He heard her cry out and turned, watching as one of the guards touched the skin on part of her exposed stomach. Neji snarled and put a few kunai in the guard's back, rendering him lifeless and bleeding at her feet. Their eyes met again and tears streamed down her face.

"Hyuuga-san…" He heard her whisper over all the chaos. Neji turned and leapt back into the fray, getting hit a few times but turning and giving one hundred what he was given. As he dwindled the number down to two more, including the one still at Anrui's side, he noticed the guard he was supposed to be fighting turn and throw a few senbon needles at the helpless woman. His eyes widened and he realized he had no time for any choices but one. He sped forward feeling the smooth needles enter his body. He swallowed hard against the pain and found himself looking into Anrui's eyes.

"Hyuuga-san!" She screamed, struggling against her bindings, but she couldn't get very far with her left side being as it was. Neji felt the guard wrap his large hands around his throat and press him against the wall. Neji winced as he felt the senbon needles sink even deeper into his back.

"Hyuuga-san! Let him go! Let Hyuuga-san go!" He heard her scream as he closed his eyes and waited for the pain to come. "Hyuuga-san, no! Hyuuga-san!" She was still screaming for him. Neji felt fist after fist being pounded into his flesh, sending the needles deeper and deeper into his back. "Hyuuga-san! Hyuuga-san!" Her voice was getting more and more desperate, more and more upset. "_NEJI_!"

His eyes snapped wide open, his pain all but forgotten. It was the first time that she had ever used his name to address him. A strange feeling coursed through him and he used his eight trigrams and dispelled the last two guards. He fell to the ground and winced, but he knew that he had to get up and get Anrui out of there. Neji stood, his knees shaking and threatening to give out. He used kunai to cut the chains holding her and she fell into his arms, tears streaming down her face.

"Neji, Neji, please don't die. Please, _please_, don't die, Neji." She cried. Neji whispered comforts into her ear, pressing his lips into her hair and breathing in her scent deeply. As her sweet smell touched him, the pain from his wounds slowly dissipated and his weakness turned to strength. He picked her up and she wrapped her arms around his neck in surprise.

"We're going home, Anrui. I'm not letting you stay here a moment longer." She nodded and allowed herself to be quietly carried as Neji ran from the Village of Hidden Mist. He didn't stop as they crossed the Naruto bridge, didn't stop until they were well into the border of their side and deep in the heart of the forests. Sweat was nearly pouring off of his skin and he leaned back against a tree, closing his eyes. Anrui watched him with worried eyes from where he had set her down.

"Neji, please. Don't go to sleep. Don't die." She whispered. Neji smiled at her, opening one eye.

"Oh please, Anrui. Like I would die of little wounds like these. Don't worry about me, all right? Are you okay?" Anrui tried to cover her showing, scarred skin in embarrassment and nodded. Neji shook his head. She was covered in both their blood and she was only worried about him. Suddenly, the forest around them went dark and her skin paled considerably. A sharp crash of thunder struck overhead, accompanied by Anrui's blood-curdling scream. Neji pulled her close and felt her tremble violently. Sheets of rain started pouring down on the both of them and Neji glared at the sky.

"Anrui, what's the matter? Are you hurt? What's going on?" He murmured into her ear. She sobbed into his chest and shook her head.

"No, make it stop! Make it go away! It's going to kill us! It'll kill all of us!" She screamed. Neji held her even closer.

"Calm down, Anrui and tell me what's going to kill us. What can I do to make it stop? What can I do to help you?" Anrui sobbed even harder.

"Make the storm go away, Neji, please! Make it stop!" Neji looked up at the sheeting rain above them and tightened his grip.

"It's going to be all right, Anrui. The storm isn't going to kill us. What's gotten into you? I've never seen you so upset…" Anrui's fear-filled eyes looked up at him and she sighed softly.

"It's time for you to know my past, Neji…It's time that you knew the truth about me." Her voice was still coated in fear, but it sparked an all-but-forgotten interest deep within his consciousness. He kept them under the canopy of leaves above them, every sense hyper-alert for the first sign of lightning damage that would put them in danger. Anrui took a deep breath, still trembling violently.

"I was born in a small village, not far from Konoha. I had three older brothers, the oldest being seven years older than me and the youngest being two years older than me. I was my mother's favorite because she had always wanted a girl amidst her sea of boys. She taught me how to run a household while my father and brothers farmed the land. They didn't want to be shinobi, unlike some of the other children in our village, and I wanted to stay with my mother.

"Then…one day, a huge storm broke out over the village. It pulled crops out of the lands and set fire to some of the trees with the lightning. My father took my brothers out into the storm to go to the barn and make sure all of our animals were secure. My mother and I watched them go." Her eyes were wide now, glazed, as she remembered her haunted past. He couldn't tell if the water on her face was her tears, or just the rain pouring down on the both of them. Neji's chest was tight as he thought about what might come next.

"They were in the barn, everything was fine. Until the wind started blowing again. The barn was steady, but nothing could stand against something like that. One of the walls blew in on them, crushing them instantly. My mother decided to go and see if they were all right, maybe possibly alive. She told me to stay in the house, where she thought it was safe. After all, it hadn't fallen over yet.

"I was watching out the window as she fought against the wind to look for my father and brothers. She was moving some of the larger pieces of debris around when the wind knocked down the other three walls of the barn, burying my mother along with the rest of my family. I wanted to help them, but I've never been the best at thinking things through. As I scrambled to my feet, wanting to see if they were okay, lightning hit my house. Even though the wood was wet, it went up in flames faster than I had ever thought possible. The house couldn't handle the stress and I didn't know where to go. It collapsed on top of me and I fell hard, landing on my right side.

"I could feel everything. The building was crushing down on my left side, still burning. My consciousness never faltered and my mind went completely blank. I couldn't think, couldn't even try to get myself free. Shinobi from Konoha came after thirty seven minutes. They pulled me from the debris and rushed me to the hospital. The medical ninja did everything they could to save me, but it was too late. The bones in my leg had almost completely fragmented. They pieced most of it back together, allowing me to be able to walk after a year. The fire from the building temporarily blinded me. My entire left side was covered in scarred tissue and lacerations and burns that they couldn't really fix." She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, but she was trembling violently and a sob escaped her throat.

"And to top it all off, some of the debris crushed part of my chakra coils. I can't regulate my chakra flow anymore. If I ever tried to use an intricate jutsu, like your trigrams, my body would produce too much chakra and it would kill me. So, I was made an ambassador that doesn't get to see any fighting. Or…at least until now. I guess I proved them right; I am useless." Her head hung and Neji felt extreme pity for the girl in his arms. She had gone through so much more than he would wish on anyone. He understood now why she didn't want to talk about her past openly. He wished that he hadn't pushed her to tell him.

"Everyone has tried to push me aside, calling me a hindrance." Neji nearly jumped; he hadn't expected her to talk after telling her story. "I'm weak, I smile too much, and I always seem to get in everyone's way. Everyone I've met has said so. Everyone I've met has treated me like I've got a disease." Her eyes looked up and met his, holding them in the swarm of emotion coming off of her. "Until you came along, Neji. You've shown me that I can be more than what everyone expects of me. Thank you." Neji sighed and gently laid her head on his chest, cradling her as the rain came down.

"I don't exactly know what to say anymore, Anrui. I wish that I could take back what's happened to you. I wish that your family could be alive to see what a strong woman you've become. I wish that I could take your pain away." She moved her hand to wipe away the tears that were falling from her eyes. "But I know that I can't. Destiny is unkind, and Fate always has its surprises. Who knows? Maybe we'll find a way to heal you. But," he smiled, "in the meantime, I think that it's time to get back to Konoha. You're bleeding, I'm bleeding and we're on the run from enemy shinobi. Come on, help me up. I'll carry you home." Anrui nodded and left his embrace to help him to his feet. Neji scooped her into his arms and began the long trek home.

They were making good time until Neji began to lose feeling in his limbs. He mentally cursed at his underestimation of the blood pouring out of his body. He began to tire, their pace becoming slower and slower until Neji was almost walking, panting heavily at the exertion.

"Anrui, we're going to…have to rest…for a minute…" Neji felt the world spin as he crashed to the ground. The last thing he heard before he succumbed to the darkness of unconsciousness was Anrui screaming his name in horror.


End file.
